


Friendly Wagers

by Hummingbird1759



Category: Star Trek: Voyager
Genre: F/M, First Dates, First Kiss, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Idiots in Love, M/M, New Year's Eve, The Betting Pool
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-22
Updated: 2021-01-24
Packaged: 2021-03-14 06:14:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,031
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28915926
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hummingbird1759/pseuds/Hummingbird1759
Summary: Voyager's crew has multiple betting pools going.  Captain Janeway decides to get a little revenge - with unintended consequences for Harry and Tom.
Relationships: Chakotay/Kathryn Janeway, Harry Kim/Tom Paris
Comments: 23
Kudos: 47





	1. Chapter 1

Tom, Harry, B’Elanna, and Mike were all in the mess hall eating Neelix’s surprisingly delicious lunch and having a rousing discussion of whether Captain Proton’s next adventure should be defeating Lord Zorbo the Grim or Queen Zirkon of Rubix. Mike and Tom had been arguing in favor of Lord Zorbo, with Harry and B’Elanna in favor of Queen Zirkon. B’Elanna was about to protest that she preferred the Queen Zirkon costume over Lady Delphine the Terrible’s when the annoyed voice of Captain Janeway interrupted her.

“Tom Paris and Harry Kim, please report to the Ready Room.”

B’Elanna shook her head in exasperation. “What did you two do this time?”

“Nothing!” Harry protested.

“On my honor, I have been a perfect angel,” Tom said, holding up his right hand.

Mike rolled his eyes. “Yeah. Perfect.”

Tom tapped his combadge and said, “We’re on our way. Paris out.”

In the turbolift on the way up, Harry frowned at Tom and said, “Seriously, _what_ did you do?”

Tom held up his hands in mock surrender. “I swear, I haven’t done anything!”

Harry regarded his best friend skeptically. “Uh huh.”

Tom remonstrated, “Really, Har, whatever it is, I didn’t do it!”

“Just don’t throw me in front of the shuttlecraft,” Harry grumbled.

They arrived at the Ready Room to find Commander Chakotay and Captain Janeway both sitting on the couch. “Mr. Paris, Mr. Kim, thank you for joining us. Have a seat.”

“What’s this all about, Captain?” Chakotay asked.

Janeway smirked. “Gentlemen, are you aware of the betting pools related to the four of us?”

All three men answered simultaneously. Tom said yes, Chakotay said no, and Harry said, “Captain, I swear I had no- wait, did you say all _four_ of us?”

“Yes, Mr. Kim,” Janeway replied, amusement sparkling in her face. “There’s a betting pool on when the commander and I will start a romantic relationship, a betting pool on when you and Mr. Paris will do the same, and a betting pool on which couple will do so first.”

“Huh.” Harry said. He knew how the crew joked about him and Tom, and it never bothered him. Hell, he was flattered that people believed he had enough game to land a guy like Tom, although he didn’t think they’d have gone as far as setting up a betting pool. _On the other hand, what else is there to do for fun on this ship?_

With a twinkle in her eye, Janeway continued, “For what it’s worth, you and Mr. Paris are the overwhelming favorite to declare your feelings for each other first – evidently no one on this ship thinks very highly of your ability to keep a secret.”

“Big shocker,” Harry muttered, rolling his eyes at Tom, who glowered at Harry but said nothing.

“How did you find this out?” Chakotay asked.

“I was going through some old files last night and found the pools encrypted in some of Neelix’s recipe books,” Janeway explained.

Chakotay raised an eyebrow at her. “Do you _ever_ sleep?”

She waved her hand dismissively. “Overrated. Anyway, I was thinking we could beat our gamblers at their own game.”

“And how do you propose we do that?” Chakotay asked.

With a mischievous smile, she replied, “As I said, most of the bets have been that Paris and Kim will officially be a couple first, with a few on the command team. But absolutely no one has bet that both couples will do so at the same time.”

A wicked grin spread across Tom’s face. “I see where this is going.”

“It’ll permanently destroy both of your chances with the Delaney sisters, though,” Chakotay pointed out.

“As if I _ever_ had a chance with them,” Harry scoffed.

Tom shrugged indifferently. “I’ve moved on.”

Janeway nodded. “Good. Next week is New Year’s Eve; if we all arrive at the party at the same time and both couples kiss at midnight, no one collects on their bet.”

“Sounds like a plan to me,” Tom said.

“I’m in,” Harry said.

“Commander?” Janeway asked with something less than her typical calm.

A dimpled smile broke across Chakotay’s face like the sun through clouds. “Of course.”

A week later, the crew packed into Sandrine’s, with everyone dressed in their finest. At 2000 sharp, Janeway walked in on Chakotay’s arm and Harry walked in on Tom’s, as planned. The first person Harry and Tom ran into was B’Elanna, looking ravishing in a little black dress.

“Boys! You look good!” B’Elanna said, studying them up and down. Her eyebrows shot up when she saw they were holding hands. “Wait… are you two… on a _date?_ ”

“Um, yeah,” Harry replied with a sheepish grin.

“It’s New Year’s, might as well try something new, right?” Tom said with his usual easy charm.

“Well, congratulations. It’s about time,” she said warmly, and winked at them.

Tom, always touchy-feely, was even more so than usual – hand on Harry’s shoulder, arm, small of his back, holding hands – and Harry returned his affections. He felt a little electricity go up his spine every time they touched and fervently hoped Tom felt the same. _If it weren’t for the bet, I’d ask him if we could sneak out early…_

Around 2200, Tuvok approached them. “Mr. Paris. Mr. Kim.”

“Yes, Tuvok?” Harry asked.

“Am I correct in surmising that your relationship is now one of a romantic nature?”

“Yes,” Tom replied. No one except Harry noticed the way Tom’s jaw tensed; he ignored the sense of foreboding it gave him.

The Vulcan nodded. “Then I offer you my congratulations. The two of you are uniquely suited to each other, and provided this new development does not interfere with your duties, I believe this will be a positive step for both of you.”

Tom smirked. “Tuvok, did you just say you’re _happy_ for us?”

“I find that entering into romantic commitments can often cause humans to develop better judgement and improve their wisdom – qualities that are rather lacking in both of you. As such, I view this to be a welcome change.” Tuvok replied in an even tone.

Harry chortled, “We’ll take whatever we can get. Thanks, Tuvok.”

At 2359, everyone gathered around the countdown, buzzing with anticipation. The crowd chanted, “10… 9…. 8… 7… 6… 5… 4… 3… 2… 1… HAPPY NEW YEAR!”

Harry and Tom’s lips met just as the chronometer rolled over to midnight. The kiss was awkward but sweet, and just long enough to convince everyone watching. _I knew I’d enjoy this, but I didn’t think it’d be this good._ When they pulled apart, Harry was dimly aware of the applause, although he suspected it was more for Janeway and Chakotay than them. For the briefest moment, he thought he saw something resembling panic in Tom’s eyes. But then it was gone, and so was Tom – melted into the crowd before Harry could say anything. He stood there for a moment feeling like he’d lost something important before joining B’Elanna and Mike.

Harry spent the rest of the evening shrugging off good-natured congratulations from everyone except the captain and first officer, who departed shortly after midnight. When he left the party at 0200, he stepped out into the corridor and said, “Computer, locate Tom Paris.”

“Lieutenant Paris is in his quarters.”

Tapping his combadge, he said, “Kim to Paris.”

“What?” came the grouchy voice.

“Can I talk to you?”

“No. Paris out.”

Harry slunk back to his quarters, dejected. _Should’ve known better than to expect anything._


	2. Chapter 2

Tom didn’t meet Harry for breakfast the next morning, or say more than “hello” to him when they were on the Bridge. Harry tried their usual text messaging, but the results were not what he’d hoped for.

_HK: Missed you at breakfast today._  
_TP: Wasn’t hungry._  
_HK: Tomorrow then?_  
_HK: Tom?_  
_TP: Not now._  


A day turned into two days, then three. It stung, but Harry got the sense that anything he said would only exacerbate the situation, so he kept quiet. On the morning of the fourth day, he sat in the mess hall, ruefully watching the captain and Chakotay gaze into each other’s eyes like a couple of smitten teenagers. _At least it worked out for somebody._

B’Elanna plunked herself down next to him, interrupting his reverie. “All right, Starfleet, what’s eating you?” 

“Nothing,” Harry grunted, stabbing at his food.

“Bullshit. You’ve been moping around like your targ died for - oh.” She lowered her voice and said, “Something happen with Tom?”

Harry sighed heavily. _Might as well tell her; if I don’t someone else will, or she’ll figure it out on her own._ Keeping his voice low, he said, “We haven’t spoken since the party. He ignores my comms, doesn’t message me on the Bridge, will barely even be in the same room with me...”

“Maybe he just needs a little space,” B’Elanna suggested. “You know the type of guy he is, and you’re...”

“The monogamy poster boy?” 

B’Elanna smiled. “Something like that. He’s probably just afraid of commitment, especially since you two started things so publicly.”

“It was just a kiss!” Harry moaned, a little too loudly.

Neither of them noticed that Tom darted out of the mess hall at the sound of those words. He skittered down the corridor to the turbolift and went directly to the Bridge, hoping that a little Delta Quadrant excitement would crop up and distract him from this whole cursed situation. _I knew I shouldn’t have agreed to this. What was I thinking?_

Harry reported to the Bridge ten minutes later and saw that Tom was already at the helm. After taking report from Gamma shift, Harry settled into his workstation. His hand hovered over the messaging function; on a calm day, messaging Tom was usually the second thing he did when he started his shift, and the long-range sensor scans suggested that (cross your fingers) today would be calm. He looked up at Tom, who was still studiously ignoring him, and put his hand back down. _I should’ve known this was a bad idea. What was I thinking?_

Two hours into Alpha shift, Chakotay glanced from Ops to the helm, just to verify that it was indeed Harry Kim and Tom Paris working today. Yes, they were both there, and nothing seemed to be wrong with either of them… except that they’d hardly said a word to each other all morning. He decided he’d message Kathryn about it; maybe she’d have some insights.

_C: Have you noticed anything odd about Paris and Kim?_  
_KJ: They have been awfully quiet lately. Think they’re up to something?_  
_C: No, I would have figured that out by now. They’re not exactly known for their subtlety._  
_KJ: Lovers’ quarrel?_  
_C: It certainly looks that way._  
_KJ: Whatever it is, they’ll work it out._  
_C: You seem assured of that._  
_KJ: Who do you think told Neelix to organize the betting pool on them? ;)_


	3. Chapter 3

After an entire week of uncomfortable silence between Harry and Tom, Chakotay called them both into his office after their shift and demanded, “All right, what’s gotten into you two?”

They gave each other confused looks. “Nothing,” they said in unison.

Chakotay frowned and folded his arms. “For the last two years, I’ve had to stop the two of you from joking with each other on the Bridge at least once a day. This past week, you’ve barely spoken to each other. As much as I appreciate the peace and quiet, I doubt it’s because you’ve suddenly decided to start acting your ages. I repeat: what’s going on?”

Tom kept his eyes forward and replied, “Nothing, sir.”

Chakotay turned his glare on Harry. “Mr. Kim, anything you’d like to say?”

“No, sir,” Harry said, eyes downcast. _This is worse than getting sent to the principal’s office._

Chakotay rubbed the bridge of his nose. “Listen, if you’re having trouble in your relationship, that’s none of my business.”

Harry noticed Tom flinch at the word “relationship” and tried to pretend that it didn’t feel like a punch in the guts.

The first officer continued, “However, everyone can see that you’re angry with each other and it’s affecting morale. Whatever’s gone wrong between you two, do us all a favor and keep it off the Bridge!”

“Yes, sir,” they groaned in unison.

“Dismissed!”

They trudged out of Chakotay’s office and onto the turbolift. After telling the computer their destination, Tom continued staring ahead, not meeting Harry’s eyes.

 _Dammit._ “Computer, halt turbolift!” Harry barked. “Enough, Tom! Why are you acting this way?”

Tom looked down at the floor with an expression that reminded Harry of a kicked puppy. “Harry, I…” He began, but couldn’t seem to find a way to finish his sentence.

Harry sighed. “Tom, we can’t let a kiss ruin everything. I just,” he gulped, trying to ignore the way his chest felt like broken glass. “I miss you.” _And I’d hoped for more, but if that’s not what you want, I can deal with it._

“I miss you too,” Tom murmured.

Harry thought for a moment. “Am I really that bad of a kisser?”

At this, Tom finally cracked a smile. “No. You’re not.”

Harry smiled back at him. “Neither are you. Better than my other boyfriends, in fact.”

Tom recoiled in surprise. “You date men?”

“Sometimes,” Harry replied nonchalantly.

Tom stammered, “But what about Libby?”

“Not one of those times,” he answered in the same casual tone.

Silence reigned for a moment, and then Tom sighed gloomily, gaze still fixed on the floor. “I’m sorry I’ve been avoiding you. I know we only did this as a favor to the captain and to screw with everyone in the betting pool, but-”

Harry interrupted, “What made you think that?”

Tom’s head snapped up, blue eyes flashing, and he retorted, “Why _wouldn’t_ I, Mr. I Have A Girl Back Home? Mr. I’ve Known You Two Years But Never Mentioned I’m Into Men?”

“I mean... didn’t everyone experiment at the Academy?” Harry said with a self-deprecating shrug. “I’m sorry I never told you. I guess I just didn’t think it was that important.” 

He looked over at Tom, and suddenly he saw what was in those watery eyes; what had _been_ there since Deep Space Nine, and his heart broke a little. “Or that you were interested,” he breathed.

Tom swallowed hard and turned his face to the ceiling. He choked out, “It’s fine, Harry, I know you-“

“Shut up,” Harry groaned, and dragged Tom down for a kiss.

Heat surged through him as their mouths met desperately, Tom clinging to Harry as if he were a life raft, Harry’s fingers tangled in Tom’s hair. Tom tasted like Neelix’s leola root pastries and replicated coffee with too much sugar, and Harry thought nothing had ever tasted better. It was as if he’d found a piece of himself that he hadn’t realized was missing, and he mentally kicked himself for not seeing it sooner. _I am such a moron._

When they came up for air, Tom rested his forehead against Harry’s, blue eyes boring into him. He whispered, “You want this?”

“Yes,” Harry exhaled, returning his intense gaze. _God, do I ever._

Tom’s right hand, already clutching a fistful of Harry’s uniform, tightened its grip. Still barely able to speak, he breathed, “Not just a friends-with-benefits thing?”

“You know I don’t do that. And even if I did... not with you,” he murmured, eyes still locked on Tom’s.

“Good. Because I couldn’t… not with you,” Tom said, stroking Harry’s cheek with his thumb. “I went along with the bet because I thought friends-with-benefits was all I’d ever get from you, but instead of helping, it just…”

“Hurt like hell?” Harry squeezed him closer.

“Yeah,” Tom whispered.

“Sorry, flyboy, but I’ve got it bad for you. Even worse now that you put me into withdrawal for a week,” Harry beamed, and kissed him again.

“So what now?”

“I was hoping we could go somewhere that doesn’t have security cameras,” Harry nipped at Tom’s ear.

“Don’t want to give Tuvok a cheap thrill, huh?” Tom snickered.

“Him, or anyone else who might need the turbolift.”

The next day, Lieutenant Paris and Ensign Kim reported for duty with their usual good cheer, and everyone else on the Bridge breathed a sigh of relief. About an hour into their shift, Tom messaged Harry at his station.

_TP: Want to join the new betting pools?_  
_HK: Sure, what are they?_  
_TP: I have one on whether Jenny or Megan Delaney will settle down first, one on when Mike and B’Elanna are finally going to get together, and one on when the captain and Chakotay will have a kid._  
_HK: For Mike and B’Elanna, put me down for 5 rations on the First Contact Day party. For the captain and Chakotay, 5 rations on Never, and for the Delaney sisters, 5 rations on Jenny._  
_TP: Megan’s prettier._  
_HK: That’s exactly why I’m betting on Jenny. ;)_  
_TP: You don’t think Janeway and Chakotay will have kids?_  
_HK: Can you imagine having her for a mom? “Go clean your room! Do it! And get mommy her coffee! Dismissed!”_

Chakotay groaned inwardly. Behind him, he could hear Harry Kim trying (and failing) to control his laughter, and in front of him, he could see Tom Paris trying (and failing) to control his. _I really need to be more careful of what I ask for…_

Chakotay snapped, “Paris! Kim! Something funny?”

“No, sir,” they chorused, a tad too enthusiastically.

He retorted, “Then I’d appreciate a little more focus from you!”

“Yes, sir,” they replied, at least having the decorum to act chastened.

“You two will be the death of me,” he grumbled. Turning to his console, he saw that Kathryn had messaged him from the Ready Room.

_KJ: Everything all right out there?_  
_C: Yes. The children are just a little unruly._  
_KJ: Nice to see everything’s back to normal._  
_C: I think I liked it better when they weren’t speaking._  
_KJ: Just wait until they have kids of their own. ;)_  
_C: If that happens, I’ll find another New Earth._  
_KJ: Don’t you remember what happened the last time we left the crew unsupervised?_  
_C: Not for us. For them!_


End file.
